10,000 ITBP troops may be recruited for LAC duty

The Centre is examining a proposal to recruit 10,000 additional troops for the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), to be deployed along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China. The new recruits will be responsible for guarding 47 border out-posts (BOPs), sanctioned by the Union cabinet in 2020. The move comes amid reports of increasing deployment of Chinese forces along the border, even as the two sides are expected to hold the 13th round of high-level military talks on disengagement this month.

The new battalions, officials said, would help the border guarding force to better rotate troops from forward locations to units in the mainland. Currently, the troops are rotated every three months. At present, there are 180 BOPs, each with a strength of about 140 soldiers at each outpost. "The matter is still under consideration. Several officials at North Block are of the view that instead of raising new battalions, ITBP can utilise the forces by withdrawing from anti-Maoists or VVIP security duties," said a home ministry official.

A home ministry spokesperson declined to comment on the status of the proposal.

Besides 47 additional BOPs, the government has already sanctioned construction of 12 staging camps that will provide rations, logistics and a place to stay for ITBP during long-range patrols along the Himalayan frontier. The staging camps act as temporary BOPs and reduce the inter-BOP distance at the border.